Death Valley NP / NPS

A group of 495 outdoor-related organizations have signed a letter being sent to Congress urging an immediate reversal of the federal government's seemingly arbitrary firing of public lands workers. Groups to sign on include conservation organizations, local tourism boards, friends of national parks, tribal organizations, and even outdoor marketing firms, among others. The letter is a reaction to the chaotic firings of park rangers, researchers, and general staff among federally run public lands agencies. 

With announcements that seem to come daily from the White House about plans to fire federal workers, institute hiring freezes, then reverse those decisions, nothing is certain in terms of public lands staffing, putting superintendents and people whose income depends on a robust, predicatble tourism schedule in incredibly difficult positions. 

Thus far, Republicans in Congress have largely seemed unwilling to speak out against the White House's strange decision-making, so it's unclear if they can be swayed, even with pressure applied by constituents nationwide. 

The letter being sent is reproduced in full below:

February 28, 2025
United States Senators and Representatives,

On behalf of our members, supporters, and volunteer stewards, we write with significant concerns regarding the recent mass firing of federal employees still within their probationary periods, particularly those individuals who had been employed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), USDA Forest Service (USFS) and the National Park Service (NPS). These firings are unprecedented
(approximately 5,700 employees as of now) and made without regard to the agencies’ ability to carry out their mandates as required by law or the impacts on the management of our public lands. This loss of staff will have devastating effects on the protection and management of these lands and cause economic hardship to the communities that surround them. We urge Congress to immediately reverse these terminations and halt any further workforce reductions to our public land management agencies.

Our nation’s public lands are treasures to be stewarded by our land management agencies according to the missions for which Congress created them and the mandates dictated to them by law. It is these agencies whose employees are responsible for protecting these national treasures. These employees are educators, engineers, recreation specialists, permit processors, maintenance staff, campground hosts, front-facing park and forest rangers, wildlife biologists, backcountry safety patrollers, wildland firefighters, trail construction leaders, and all other kinds of professionals driven to serve their country with
their expertise. With a steady decrease in staffing over the last decade, they are often overworked, underappreciated, and underpaid. Without them, however, the natural and cultural resources that belong to all Americans cannot be stewarded. They are vital to the $1.2 trillion outdoor recreation economy, which is an engine of economic development for American communities throughout our nation. 

These indiscriminate workforce reductions were made on the basis of abstract targets to reduce the federal workforce. The type or importance of the positions and reliance of Americans on their work were not considered. Critical positions such as maintenance, public health, human resources, and education positions have been terminated throughout the country.

Neither was the human factor of these citizens considered. Some who have trained for years to develop the expertise to serve their country, or were recently promoted in recognition of their service, were let go. Others who uprooted lives, moved across the country, and have exhausted their savings simply because they were called to serve the public were let go. Even high-level position holders, with long histories at one agency who simply transferred to another agency or earned a promotion, were also let go as they were technically still on probation. These neighbors, colleagues, and community members pay taxes, buy groceries and are vital contributors to their local economies, where the loss of their jobs will cause real hardship.

We urge Congress to immediately reverse these terminations and halt any further workforce reductions.

350.org

365 Degree Total Marketing Ala Kahakai Trail Association Alamosa Riverkeeper

Alaska Clean Water Advocacy

Alaska Community Action on Toxics Alaska Institute for Justice

Alaska Soles, Great Old Broads for Wilderness

Alaska Trails

Alaska Wilderness League Alianza Coachella Valley All About Adventure

Allegheny-Blue Ridge Alliance Alliance for a Better Utah

Alta Peak Chapter, California Native Plant Society

Amache Preservation Society American Baptist Churches, USA American Bird Conservancy American Discovery Trail Society American Hiking Society

American Whitewater Amigos De Los Rios Anacostia Riverkeeper

Animal Welfare Institute Appalachian Mountain Club Appalachian Voices

Archaeology Southwest

Arizona Faith Network Arizona Trail Association

Asian Pacific Islander Forward Movement Association of National Park Rangers

Atomic Heritage Foundation Auburn-Opelika Tourism

Back Country Horsemen of New Mexico Backcountry Horsemen of Oregon Sourdough Chapter

Bacon Street Youth and Family Services Bark

Bark for Mt Hood

Bear Creek Consulting Bicycle Adventures, Inc.

Bicycle Trails Council of the East Bay Bird Alliance of Oregon

Black Hills Clean Water Alliance Black Warrior Riverkeeper

Bolsa Chica Land Trust Boston Harbor Now

Bowling Green Area Convention & Visitors Bureau

Bozeman Birders Braided Seeds

Build Lebanon Trails Buka Environmental

CactusToCloud Institute California Environmental Voters

California Institute for Biodiversity

California Mountain Biking Coalition California Native Plant Society California Native Plant Society Mojave Desert Chapter

California Native Seed Supply Collaborative

Californians for Western Wilderness CalWild

Cane River National Heritage Area Carriages of Acadia, Inc.

Cascade Backcountry Alliance Cascade Forest Conservancy Cascade Volunteers

Center for a Sustainable Coast Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice

Center for Large Landscape Conservation Center for Sustainable Communities Central Cascades Winter Recreation

Council

Central Sierra Environmental Resource Center

Central/Eastern Oregon Chapter of the Great Old Broads for Wilderness Chattahoochee National Park

Conservancy

Chattooga Conservancy

Chautauqua-Conewango Consortium, A Waterkeeper Alliance Affiliate

Cherokee Concerned Citizens Cherokee Forest Voices

Chispa Arizona

Christians For The Mountains

Citizens for a Safe & Clean Lake Superior City of Issaquah

Clackamas River Basin Council

Clarksburg Visitors Bureau

Climate Law & Strategy

Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection Coalition to Protect America's National Parks

Coastal Carolina Riverwatch Cog Wild Bicycle Tours

Collier County Waterkeeper

Colorado Mountain Bike Association Colorado Mountain Club

Colorado Native Plant Society, Conservation Committee

Colorado Wild Public Lands Colorado Wildlands Project Colt Park Foundation, Inc.

Community Land Shepherds Concord Freedom

Concord Trails Committee Connecting Nature

Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Conservation Colorado

Conservation Lands Foundation Conservation Minnesota

Conservation Northwest

Conservation Voters New Mexico Conserve Southwest Utah

Continental Divide Trail Coalition Cook Inletkeeper

Coosa River Basin Initiative Creation Justice Ministries

Cross New Hampshire Adventure Trail Cycle Yamhill County

Cyclotour Guide Books Deer Tail Scientific Defenders of Wildlife

Delaware River Greenway Partnership

Dickinson County Trails Board

Duncan Development Earth Ethics, Inc.

Earthjustice ecoAmerica EcoFlight

Edisto Chamber of Commerce Edmonson County Tourist and Convention Commission

Enchanted Circle Trails Association Endangered Habitats League Endangered Species Coalition Environmental Law & Policy Center Environmental Protection Information Center

Environmental Services International LLC Evergreen Escapes

Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance Explore Brookhaven

Explore Estill Farm 51

Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics, and Ecology

FireGeneration Collaborative

Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy's Environmental Coalition

Forest Bridges: The O&C Forest Habitat Project

Forest Keeper

Forest Stewards Guild Forest Unlimited ForeverGreen Trails

Four Way Community Foundation Franklin D. Roosevelt Hyde Park Foundation

Friends of the Eel River Friends of Acadia

Friends of Blackwater, Inc.

Friends of Congaree Swamp Friends of Dyke Marsh

Friends of Fairsted Friends of Fish Lake

Friends of Fish Lake and HistoriCorps Friends of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

Friends of Ironwood Forest

Friends of Katahdin Woods and Waters Friends of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens Friends of Minidoka

Friends of Minute Man National Park Friends of Plumas Wilderness

Friends of Pu'uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park

Friends of Rio Grande del Norte Friends of Saguaro National Park

Friends of San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Friends of Save our Heritage

Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness Friends of the 500th

Friends of the Boston Harbor Islands Friends of the Clearwater

Friends of the Dunes Friends of the Earth Friends of the Inyo

Friends of the Kalmiopsis

Friends of the North Pikes Creek Wetlands

Friends of the Sonoran Desert

Friends of the Springfield Armory National Historic Site

Friends of the West Shore

Friends of Vicksburg National Military Park and Campaign

Friends of Wisconsin State Parks

Friends of Women’s Rights National Historical Park

Gallatin Wildlife Association

Gila Chapter Back Country Horsemen of America

Glacier-Two Medicine Alliance Glen Canyon Institute

Golden Bricks Events Grand Canyon Trust

Grand Staircase Escalante Partners Grant Monument Association Great Basin Resource Watch

Great Old Broads for Wilderness Great Salt Lake Waterkeeper Greater Gadsden Area Tourism Greater Yellowstone Coalition Green America

Greenbrier River Watershed Assoc. Inc. Groton Ayer Buzz

Ground Squirrel Research Ground Work Trails

Gunpowder Riverkeeper Hamilton Partnership for Paterson

Hampshire County Convention & Visitors Bureau

Headwaters Trails Alliance Heather Nold

Henderson Tourist Commission

High Country Conservation Advocates Hills For Everyone

Historic Pullman Foundation Historicorp

Hot Springs Advertising & Promotion Commission

Humboldt Waterkeeper

Idaho Conservation League Idaho Trails Association

Inland Ocean Coalition Intentional Hiking

International Fund for Animal Welfare Issaquah Alps Trails Club

Issaquah Ice Cream Trike

Jackson County Tourism Development Authority

Japanese American Citizens League Kalmiopsis Audubon Society

Kayak Academy

Kentucky Heartwood

Kentucky Tourism Services Inc Kettle Range Conservation Group King County Play Equity Coalition Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center KLM and Associates

Large Carnivore Fund

Lassen Forest Preservation Group Latino Outdoors

Laura Beth Strickland

League of Conservation Voters

Lewis County CVB?Stonewallcountry Liberty Tourism & Convention

Commission Lofts on Central

Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust Los Padres ForestWatch

Lowelifes Respectable Citizens' Club Machine-Free Trails Association

Maine Audubon

Malach Consulting

Marin County Bicycle Coalition Megafire Action

Methow Valley Citizens Council Mi Familia Vota

Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts

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Mining Impact Coalition of Wisconsin Mississippi Park Connection

Mississippi Tourism Association Missouri River Bird Observatory Montana Conservation Voters Morehead-Rowan County Tourism

Morongo Basin Conservation Association Mother Lode Chapter - Sierra Club Mount Diablo Bird Alliance

Mount Rushmore Society

Mount Shasta Bioregional Ecology Center Mountains to Sound Greenway National Heritage Area

MountainTrue

MT Organizing Project

National Association of Forest Service Retirees

National Park Friends Alliance

National Park Hospitality Association National Park Partners of Chickamauga, Chattanooga, and Moccasin Bend

National Parks Conservation Association National Parks of Lake Superior

Foundation

National Religious Coalition on Creation Care

National Wildlife Federation

National Wildlife Refuge Association Native Organizers Alliance

Natural Resources Defense Council Nature for All

Nature Forward

New Belgium Brewing Company New Insights

New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium New Mexico Climate Justice

New Mexico Sportsmen

New York - New Jersey Trail Conference North Cascade Films

North Fork Preservation Association North Sound Waterkeeper/RE Sources North West WI Equestrian Friends

Network

Northeast Ohio Black Health Coalition Northeast Tennessee Tourism Northern Alaska Environmental Center Northwest Colorado Great Old Broads Northwest portal

Northwest WI Equestrian Friends NY/NJ Baykeeper

Oakridge Trails Alliance

Ocean Conservation Research Ohio Environmental Council

Old North Illuminated

Oldham County KY Tourism Olympic Hiking Co.

Olympic Park Advocates Oregon Equestrian Trails

Oregon Natural Desert Association Oregon Outdoor Recreation Advisory Council

Oregon Parks Forever Oregon Trails Coalition Oregon Wild

Outdoor Equity Coalition Outward Bound Adventures

Overmountain Victory Trail Association Ozark Riverways Foundation

Ozark Trail Association

Pacific Crest Trail Association Park City Tourist & Convention Commission

Park County Environmental Council

Park Overlook Farm

Patagonia Area Resource Alliance Peace in the Wild

Pelecanus

Pennsylvania Recreation and Park Society Physicians for Social Responsibility PA

Pilchuck Audubon Society

Pinchot Institute for Conservation Powell County Tourism Commission Prairie Rivers Network

Preserve Calavera Prestonsburg Tourism

Dr. Linda J. Bilmes, Professor, Harvard Kennedy School

Project Eleven Hundred Protect the Kobuk

Public Lands Alliance

Public Lands Foundation Putnam County Tourism Quiet Use Coalition

Rachel Carson Council Rainier BaseCamp Raritan Riverkeeper

Red Line Parkway Initiative Redbud Audubon Society Regeneración

Releaf

Resinate with Ames, LLC Resource Renewal Institute Restore Oregon

Rio Grande Indivisible, NM Rising Routes Alliance Riverkeeper

Rock Creek Conservancy Inc. Rocky Mountain Conservancy Rocky Mountain Wild

Rogue Riverkeeper

Roosevelt Campobello International Park

Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition Russian Riverkeeper

Sage Trail Alliance Sakura Foundation

Salamander Volunteer Trail Crew Salem Area Trail Allliance

San Joaquin River Parkway & Conservation Trust, Inc.

San Jose Conservation Corps San Juan Citizens Alliance

San Juan Kayak Expeditions - The Adventure Hub

San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council San Luis Valley Great Outdoors San Pedro 100

Sand Creek Massacre Foundation Sandy Hook Foundation

Satilla Riverkeeper Save Our Earth Save Our Heritage Save the Dunes

Save the Yellowstone Grizzly SAWS

Securing Economic and Energy Democracy

Seneca Lake Guardian

Sequoia Parks Conservancy Shār Snacks

Sheep Mountain Alliance Sierra Business Council Sierra Club

Sierra Club Wyoming Chapter

Sierra Foothills Audubon Society Sierra Forest Legacy

Sierra Nevada Alliance

Silver Valley Community Resource Center Silvix Resources

SItka Trail Works Sky Island Alliance

Snake River Waterkeeper Snowlands Network

Sonoma Land Trust South Coast Tours LLC

South San Juan Broadband South Yuba River Citizens League

Southeast Alaska Conservation Council Southeast Tourism Society

Southern Environmental Law Center Southern Off-Road Bicycle Association Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance Southwest Montana Mountain Bike Association

Southwest Native Cultures Southwest Wetlands Interpretive Association

Spokane Parks Foundation Standing Trees

Steven Fullerton

Susitna River Coalition Sustainable Tucson

Sustainable Water Network SWMMBA

TeamTLC

The Adventure Hub

The Arizona Deserts National Parks Partnership

The Clinch Coalition

The Colorado Mountain Club

The Environmental Law Society of Vermont Law & Graduate School The Fund for People in Parks

The League to Save Lake Tahoe The Mountaineers

The Outer Banks Visitors Bureau

The Street Trust - Oregon

The Student Conservation Association The Vermont Mountain Bike Association The Wilderness Need Association

The Wilderness Society The Wilderness Society Third Act

Three Rivers Waterkeeper

Town of Breckenridge Open Space & Trails Trail Access Project

Trail Riders of Today Travel Unity

TREAD

Trinity Coalition TROT

True Wind Collaborative Trust for Public Land

Try This WV

Tucson Organic Gardeners Tuleyome

Turtle Island Restoration Network Ulysses S. Grant Association Unite the Parks

United States Tour Operators Association University of Washington, School of Environmental and Forest Sciences Upper Gila Watershed Alliance

Upper Housatonic Valley NHA Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment

Vail Valley Mountain Trails Alliance Vermont Huts Association

Very Concerned Citizen Vet Voice Foundation

Virginia Wilderness Committee Visit Issaquah

Visit St. Francisville

Voyageurs Conservancy

Wasatch Backcountry Alliance Washington Wild

Waterkeeper Alliance Waterkeepers Chesapeake

WE ACT for Environmental Justice West

West Virginia Environmental Council West Virginia Highlands Conservancy West Virginia Rivers Coalition Western Colorado Alliance

Western Environmental Law Center Western Resource Advocates Western Slope Conservation Center Western Watersheds Project

Wild Cumberland

Wild Livelihoods Business Coalition Wild Montana

Wild Rivers Conservancy Wilderness Workshop Wildlands Network

Wildlife Conservation Society, Arctic Beringia Program

Willamette Riverkeeper

Willamette Valley Chapter Native Plant Society of Oregon

Winter Wildlands Alliance

Wolf Creek Community Alliance Women’s institute for Leadership and Learning

WV Headwaters Waterkeeper Wyoming Outdoor Council Wyoming Wilderness Association Wyoming Wildlife Advocates

Youth Outdoor Experience - Ironwood Tree Experience

Youth United for Climate Crisis Action

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